President Biden is expected to give a rare speech in the Oval Office on Friday night after Congress passed legislation aimed at preventing economic catastrophe in the nation’s first default.
The act, known as the Bipartisan Budget Agreement, through the Senate late Thursday after receiving extensive support in the house this week. It suspended the debt ceiling for two years and cut spending.
Mr. Biden is expected to sign the bill before speaking at 7 p.m. on Friday, just three days ago The Treasury Secretary said the government’s ability to pay its debts would run out, a situation that economists predict will cause global turmoil.
The president and legislators have expressed optimism for weeks that they will reach a deal to avoid that outcome, but deep disagreements between Democrats and Republicans have left the country — and the world. gender — tense until a vote is made in both houses.
Presidents often dedicate the Oval Office to speeches to the nation about war, economic crisis, or natural disaster. President Ronald Reagan delivered gloomy comment from the Oval Office about the 1986 Challenger space shuttle explosion. President Donald J. Trump announced pandemic restrictions from the Oval Office in early 2020.
Mr. Biden’s decision to use the same venue on Friday shows how close he believes the two sides have come.
White House officials were cautious about what Biden intended to say in his speech. But he has repeatedly said that he hopes to find a way to avoid a similar situation in the future and has mentioned part of the 14th Amendment to the Constitution saying that the debt of the United States “will not be questioned.”
Some legal experts believe that a president could use that passage to bypass the statutory debt limit, thereby avoiding frequent conflicts between the parties. Mr. Biden said last month that he hopes to “find a reasonable basis to take it to court to see if the 14th Amendment is in fact the thing that can stop it.”
On Sunday, he said, “It’s another day.”
During his Oval Office speech, Mr. Biden was also able to face the anger of some progressives in his party that he agreed to too many Republican demands in the negotiations.
Some Democratic lawmakers voted against the debt ceiling law because new job request which it imposes on some food aid recipients. White House officials have argued that the law also removes work requirements for others, including homeless people and veterans. But Democratic critics continue to be annoyed.
The president also angered some environmentalists when he agreed approval for construction of natural gas pipeline through West Virginia and Virginia. Critics say the 300-mile Mountain Valley Pipeline will harm wildlife and the environment as it cuts across the Appalachian Trail.
For Mr. Biden, who is running for a second term as president, the debt ceiling deal helps avoid severing the burgeoning economy, which has been a key selling point for his campaign. In his comment, he is likely talking about Strong job growth during his first two years in office.
But his political advisers must also be concerned with maintaining support from the constituency that brought him to power in 2020, some of whom have been disappointed with his achievements in the campaign. climate, criminal justice and other fields.
